Aoozu Billahi as-Samee al-Aleemi minash Shaitanir Rajeem
Bismillah,…, Alhamdulillahi wahdah was salaatu was salaamu ala man la nabiya ba’adah
Rabbish sharah li sadri wa yassirli amri wahlul uqdatam min lisaani yafqahu qauli
As Salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu
In our last session we completed the Introduction to the Quran Part 3 by dividing ahadith an-Nabi (صلى الله عليه وسلم) into 14 sections.
Today, 29-July-2026 corresponding to 15-Safar-1448 Hijri, we will talk about Part 4 – History of the Holy Quran.
Part 4 – History of the Quran
We have divided this history part into 11 sections;
1. Illiterate Arabs
Dr. Hamidullah was a renowned scholar in the Indian Sub-Continent, who wrote many books. In his book, “An Introduction to the Science of Hadith – In the Light of Saheefa Hammam Ibn Munabbih” he writes that, Various clans of the Semitic race inhabited the sandy desert constituting the sub-continent of Arabia. Except for those who lived along the coastal regions, these people were mostly nomadic of habits, meaning they were Baddu, lived in tents and wandered from one place to another. Scarcity of water was the prime cause of the primitive state of their culture.[1]
As far as the Arabic language was concerned it had 28 sounds or consonants, in the dialect spoken at Makkah. There were different scripts in different parts of Arabia, as archaeology has proved, but thanks to Islam, the Makkan alphabet prevailed in the long run. According to Arab historian, Baladhuri, it was shortly before Islam that some people of Hirah (now Kufah) introduced the “luxury” of writing in Makkah. So, before Islam this Arabic writing was in such a crude state that it had neither the short vowel (i’rāb) nor even an independent shape for each letter, for its 28 consonants, they seem to have only 15 graphical signs.[2]
Meaning that they could not distinguish between the alphabets Ba, Ta, Tha, Noon and Ya if they appeared at the beginning of a word or in the middle of it, one would have to guess as the dots were also not written. Similar is the case with;
- Jeem, Ha and Kha,
- Daal and Dhal,
- Seen and Sheen,
- Saad and Dhaad,
- Ain, Ghain,
- Fa and Qaaf.[3]
Due to their circumstances, the people of Arabia did not seem to be inclined to learning in the pre-islamic times. Since Quraish had trade links with other Arab and non-Arab entities, they were required to write down the trade contracts with the leaders of the markets where they were trading. Compared to the rest of Arabia, the city of Makkah had more people who knew how to read and write Arabic and that number was 17 people, other cities had even less people who knew how to read or write. Even poetry was not written, it was transmitted orally and hence the Arabs did not feel the urge to invest their time in learning or writing.[4]
These were the conditions in which the first Wahi was revealed to Rasoolullahi (صلى الله عليه وسلم) while he (صلى الله عليه وسلم) also did not know how to read and write.
2. First Wahi
According to Sheikh Safiur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri, who writes in his biography of the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), ar-Raheeq al-Makhtoom, the first revelation came down on a Monday, 21st of Ramadan, corresponding to 10-August-610 AD while Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was 40 years old. The first five verses of Surah al-Alaq were revealed.[5]
- It was the month of Ramadan,[6] and during the night of Power, during Lailatul Qadr,[7] the sequence of wahi, the revelation of the Quran started.
- According to the hadith of Ummul Momineen Aisha (رضي الله عنها) in Sahih al-Bukhari, The beginning of the revelation of the Quran on Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was in the form of good dreams, which came true like bright daylight, and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him,
- He (صلى الله عليه وسلم) used to go into seclusion in the cave of Hira where he used to worship (Allah alone) continuously for many days before his desire to see his family. He used to take with him some food for the stay and then come back to (his wife) Khadija to take his food likewise again till suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in the cave of Hira.
- The angel came to him and asked him to read. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) replied, “I do not know how to read.” The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) added, “The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read and this repeats 2 more times and after the third iteration the angel said,
اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ
- Recite in the name of your Fosterer Who created.[8]
خَلَقَ الْإِنْسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ
- He created man from something that clings and hangs (like a leech).[9]
اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الْأَكْرَمُ
- Recite, and your Fosterer is the Most Honourable,[10]
- This was the experience of the first revelation, and it was so tough that his heart was beating severely. He (صلى الله عليه وسلم) went home to Khadija (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهَا) and told her “Zammilooni” cover me, cover me. To aap (صلى الله عليه وسلم) so they covered him till his fear was over…[11]
3. Writing down of the Quran in Makkah
Since reading and writing was not so common in the initial part of the revelation of the Quran, but after the first revelation came down, there was a pause in the revelation for some months, and since the Arabs were habituated to remember poetry as soon as they heard it, they were able to recite what they heard to others very easily. So learning the first few verses of the first wahi was no big deal.[12]
Dr. Yasir Qadhi explains in his book, “An Introduction to the Sciences of the Quraan” that,
- With these facts in mind (about the capabilities of Arabs in oral transmission), it is doubtful that the Quran was written down during the very early Makkan period, meaning the first 2-3 years.
- So whatever Quran was revealed during this period was obviously learnt by heart or memorized by the Sahaba (رضي الله عنهم) as the companions were praying before an-Nabi (صلى الله عليه وسلم) even went on the journey of al-Isra wal-Meraaj.
- The earliest record that exists of the Quran having been written down is during the sixth year of prophethood (or seven years before Hijrah), when Umar (رضي الله عنه) accepted Islam.
- Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ)’s sister had a saheefa or a parchment that was brought to their house by one sahabi, Khabbab (رضي الله عنه) for teaching them Surah TaaHaa, as it had the first few verses of this Surah written on it and they were reading from it.
- This is when Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) read the Quran for the first time, after reading it, he (رضي الله عنه) said, “How beautiful and eloquent is this speech”! And realized that the Quran was a revelation from Allah and accepted Islam.
- This story indicates that the Quran was being taught by the prophet and was written down, while Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was still in Makkah and while the Muslims were being persecuted (by Quraish).[13]
Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was also very concerned about the preservation of the Quran, he (صلى الله عليه وسلم) used to be fearful of forgetting the verses that Jibreel (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَام) recited to him, so he used to start repeating the verses even before Jibreel (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَام) finished. So, Allah Ta’ala revealed the following verses to reassure him.
لَا تُحَرِّكۡ بِهٖ لِسَانَكَ لِتَعۡجَلَ بِهٖؕ ١٦
(While reciting the Quran) do not move your tongue (fast) with it (so as to) make haste with it.[14]
إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا جَمْعَهُ وَقُرْآنَهُ
(The responsibility of) collecting it and reciting it, is certainly on Us.[15]
How much of the Quran was written down in Makkah is not clear to us, but one thing is certain that, whatever Quran was revealed was memorized,
- In a hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, learn the recitation of Quran from four persons, Ibn Masud, Salim (the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifa), Ubai and Muadh ibn Jabal.[16]
- Before migrating to Madina, when more and more people in Madina accepted Islam, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) sent Musab Ibn Umair aur Ibn Maktoom (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُما) to teach the Quran to the newly converted Muslims of Madina.[17]
- There are many other such narrations, and as Imam adh-Dhahabee explains, what these narrations mean is that these companions of ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم) were the foremost in memorizing the Quran and it is through them the chains of narrators of the Quran go back to the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم).[18]
- And we can establish that the Quran was both memorized and partly written down from the very beginning of its revelation.
4. Writing down of the Quran in Madina
Dr. Yasir Qazi records a hadith in his book, “An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an” that:
- Ubadah Ibn as-Samit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) narrated, “Whenever a person migrated to Madina, Rassolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) would assign him to one of us so that we could teach him the Quran.
- Meaning that whoever knew the Quran, was given the responsibility of teaching the Quran to the newcomers. This way the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) made sure that each new Muslim had a teacher to teach the Quran to him.
- Such was the concern of ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم) in teaching the Quran to the new Muslims that he would send companions to other cities to ensure that the Muslims in those cities could memorise the Quran.
- After migrating to Madina, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) sent Muadh ibn Jabal (رضي الله عنه) to Makkah to teach the Quran to those Muslims who were unable to perform hijrah.
Like Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) his companions (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) shared the same concern for the preservation of the Quran. The first memorizers of the Quran were,
- Abu Bakr,
- Umar ibn al-Khattab,
- Uthman ibn Affan,
- Ali ibn Abi Talib,
- Hudhaifa ibn al-Yaman,
- Abdullah ibn Masood,
- Abdullah ibn Amr,
- Adbudllah ibn Abbas,
- Ubay ibn Kaab,
- Muadh ibn Jabal,
- Zayd ibn Thabit, and others.[19]
In 4 hijri, when Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) sent 70 Sahaba (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) to teach the Quran to the people of Najd, on the way to Najd at a watering place of Bir Maunah, the well of Maunah, the sahaba were attacked and died fighting;[20]
- This shows that many of the Companions had memorised the Quran.
- During the later periods, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) also made sure that the Quran was written down, and not just memorized.[21]
Dr. Omar Sulaiman, in a lecture on Zaid Ibn Thabit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) says that Zaid (رضي الله عنه) was born in Madina, he was 6 years old when his father passed away, his mother enrolled him into a jewish school for learning how to read and write and when he was just 11 years old when he and his mother accepted islam and he had memorized the entire Quran that was revealed till that time through Musab ibn Umar (رضي الله عنه) – the Ambassador of ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم) in Yathrib (the name of al-Madina before prophet’s migration),
- This happened even before Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) migrated to Madina, and when Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) reaches Madinah, his mother made arrangements for Zaid (رضي الله عنه) to be taken to the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and recite the Quran he knew, in front of the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم).
- Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) listens to him and according to the hadith in Jami at-Tirmidhi gives him a task of learning Hebrew, Zaid (رضي الله عنه) masters the Hebrew language, to read and write and communicate in just a couple of weeks, comes back and reports to the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), who used Zaid (رضي الله عنه) as a scribe, whenever the prophet wanted to write a letter to the jews Zaid (رضي الله عنه) wrote it to them and when they wrote, he would read their letters to ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم).[22]
- Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) again asks Zaid (رضي الله عنه) do you know syriac, a language much older than hebrew, and he goes and learns syriac in just 17 days and reports back to the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and in one narration, ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم) asks him what about persian, so again he goes and learns how to read and write persian and he does it in 16 days and he learns enough languages to be the katib an-Nabi, Scribe of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم).[23]
- According to an article in Wikipedia on Zaid Ibn Thabit (رضي الله عنه) mentions that he asked permission from Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) to participate in the battle of Badr, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) did not give him permission as he was less than the age of 15, however, he later joined the ranks of the Muslim army when he was 19.[24]
- He was given the task of writing down the wahi, and he dedicated himself to it, and in a narration in Sahih al-Bukhari, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, Call Zaid for me and let him bring the board, the inkpot and the scapula bone and when he came, he was asked to write down the wahi that was revealed, “Not equal are those Believers who sit…” [Quran, iv, 95],
- While he was writing the ayah, Ibn Umm Maktoum (رضي الله عنه), the blind sahabi, who was sitting behind the prophet, said “O Allah’s Apostle! What is your order for me (as regards the above Verse) as I am a blind man?”
- So, instead of the above Verse, the following Verse was revealed: ‘Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) except those who are disabled (by injury or are blind or lame etc.) and those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah.[25]
- Yasir Qadhi says, this incident shows how quick was Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) in recording the wahi.[26]
- In another version of the above incident in Sunan an-Nasai, when Zaid (رضي الله عنه) was still writing the ayah and Ibn Umm Maktoum (رضي الله عنه) asks the question to Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) what he should do, and the modification of the ayah came down through another Wahi, Zaid (رضي الله عنه) says that during this wahi the thigh of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was against mine, and became so heavy that I thought my thigh would break, until (the revelation) stopped and Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) asked Zaid (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) to modify the changes.[27]
- This hadith is a proof of the fact that light exerts pressure, Quran is noor, it is light and it exerts pressure. Confirmed through eye witness accounts who felt the pressure of the Quran and reported it, otherwise, we would not have understood the significance of Qaswa sitting down due to the weight of the Wahi, as she cannot speak, but again people saw what was happening.
- Not only the writing, but Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) would check what was written down, Dr. Yasir Qadhi records this hadith in his Introduction to the science of the Quran, Zaid (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) himself narrates, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) would command me, Read it back to me, so I used to recite back to him (what I had written)…,
- According to Tabaqat of Ibn Saad some, 24 different Sahaba (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) acted in the capacity of scribes of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) among them were the four caliphs and Zaid Ibn Thabit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم).
- The writing material that was used by the scribes were;
- cloth,
- stones,
- Date-palm leaves,
- Saddles and,
- Shoulder blades of animals.[28]
5. Sahaba (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم)’s Personal copies of Quran
The rejectors of ahadith, al-Quraniyyoon quote this hadith from Sahih Muslim frequently, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, Do not take down anything from me, and he who took down anything from me except the Qur’an, he should erase that…;[29]
- So the Quraniyyon say, see Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) himself is saying do not write down anything from me except the Quran, so how come ahadith were written down?
- This is nothing but hypocrisy and ignorance, and the example of hypocrites is given in the first verse of Surah al-Munafiqoon, where Allah Ta’ala says;
إِذَا جَاءَكَ الْمُنَافِقُونَ قَالُوا نَشْهَدُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ إِنَّكَ لَرَسُولُهُ وَاللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِينَ لَكَاذِبُونَ
- When the hypocrites come to you they say, “We bear witness that you are certainly a messenger of Allah.” And Allah knows that you are certainly His messenger and Allah bears witness that the hypocrites are certainly liars.
- Why? Because they do not mean what they say.
- Hamidullah when he analysed this hadith and many other ahadith which record Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) giving instructions to write down the ahadith in the lifetime of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم), it became clear that the instruction not to write down everything from ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was given only to newcomers, who did not understand the difference between the Quran and the explanation of the Quran, which Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) would give in his speeches and lectures.
- But when the new Muslims memorized the Quran, they would then be given ijazah, not only to write down the Quran but also ahadith of ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم), Dr. Hamidullah mentions several accounts of the instructions of the prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) being written down.[30]
- Probably due to this reason, the Sahaba (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) had their personal copies of the Quran,
- Yasir Qazi in his “Introduction to the Sciences of the Quran” quotes from Abu Bakr Ibn Abi Dawood’s book (the son of the great Muhaddith Abu Dawood) who wrote a book called, Kitab al-Masahif, that Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had instructed the companions that “Do not write anything from me except the Quran. Whoever writes anything besides the Quran should burn it.” and as we have understood that this command was for new Muslims and Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) later allowed his companions to write down ahadith.
- These Masahif or the personal copies of the Quran were so many that Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had to issue an order prohibiting the companions from travelling to enemy territories with copies of Quran, for fear that these Mushafs might fall into enemy hands and thus be disrespected.
- The Sahaba who were famous for their copies of Quran were;
- Ubai Ibn Kaab,
- Abdullah Ibn Masood,
- Umar Ibn al-Khattab,
- Ali Ibn Abi Talib,
- And some azwaaj ul-Mutahharaat, such as, Aisha aur Hafsa (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم).
- Some sources have listed over fifteen companions who had written down most of the Quran.
- These masahif were not complete Quran, nor was the arrangement of surahs in them were arranged according to the current arrangement of the Quran, for example,
- Ibn Masood’s mushaf had, 106 surahs
- Ubai Ibn Kaab’s mushaf had less than 114 surahs, and in addition to the Surahs he had recorded from Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم), the prayer of Qunoot and a hadith.[31]
- Yasir Qadhi has given a detailed account of how the enemies of Islam used the information in these Masahif to cast doubt on the Quran, all of this detail will be too lengthy to accommodate here.
6. Quran and the last part of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم)’s life
The ahadith of Bukhari aur Muslim have recorded that, Gabriel used to repeat the recitation of the Qur’an with Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) once a year during the month of Ramadan, but he repeated it twice with him in the year he died.
- Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) used to stay in I`tikaf for ten days every year (in the month of Ramadan), but in the year of his death, he stayed in I`tikaf for twenty days.[32]
- Yasir Qazi writes in his book, Introduction to the sciences of the Quran, that during this last recitation of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم), Zaid Ibn Thabit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) was present with the prophet,
- Even though Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) did not compile the Quran in one book during his lifetime, nor did he command the Sahaba (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) to do so,
- He (صلى الله عليه وسلم) made sure that the Quran was written down in its totality, but did not order that it be compiled between two covers, there are a number of reasons for this:
- The Quran was not in any danger of being lost, as there were numerous Sahaba who had memorised the entire Quran, and each companion had memorised various portions of the Quran;
- During the lifetime of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) ke the Quran was continuously being revealed, therefore, it was not feasible to write down the whole Quran, as it was still being revealed, meaning its revelation was not yet complete, and the last verse was revealed just nine days before Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) passed away.
- The arrangement of the Surahs were not chronological. Verses that were revealed years after the hijrah could be placed, by the command of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) in the middle of the Makkah verses and vice versa,therefore the Prophet could not have compiled the Quran until all the verses were fully revealed.
- There were some revelations that used to be part of the Quran, but Allah abrogated their recitation, this was another reasons why the wahy had to be fully completed prior to the compilation of the Quran.[33]
- Then in the hadith collected by at-Tirmidhi, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had instructed us, “Beware of the newly invented matters, for indeed they are astray. Whoever among you sees that, then he must stick to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided Khulafa’, cling to it with the molar teeth.”[34]
7. Recitation of the Quran in Seven different ways
- In a hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, Ibn Abbas (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) narrated that, Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, Jibrail (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَام) recited the Qur’an to me in one way. Then I requested him (to read it in another way), and continued asking him to recite it in other ways, and he recited it in several ways till he ultimately recited it in seven different ways.”[35]
- In another hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) narrated that, I heard Hisham bin Hakim (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) reciting Surat Al-Furqan during the lifetime of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and I listened to his recitation and noticed that he recited in several different ways which Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had not taught me.
- I was about to jump over him during his prayer, but I controlled my temper, and when he had completed his prayer, I put his upper garment around his neck and seized him by it and said, “Who taught you this Sura which I heard you reciting?”
- He replied, “Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) taught it to me.”
- I said, “You have told a lie, for Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) has taught it to me in a different way from yours.”
- So I dragged him to Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) and said (Ya Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم)), “I heard this person reciting Surat Al-Furqan in a way which you haven’t taught me!”
- On that Allah’s Apostle said, “Release him, (O `Umar!) Recite, O Hisham!” Then he recited in the same way as I heard him reciting.
- Then Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) said, “It was revealed in this way,” and added, “Recite, O `Umar!”
- I recited it as he had taught me. Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) then said, “It was revealed in this way. This Qur’an has been revealed to be recited in seven different ways, so recite it whichever (way) is easier for you (or read as much of it as may be easy for you).[36]
8. Compilation of the Quran during the Khilafah of Abu Bakr (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)
The battle of Yamama took place after Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) had passed away, and during the caliphate of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه), where the Muslims fought Musaylima, the liar and his followers, who had claimed to be a false prophet;
- In a hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, Zaid Ibn Thabit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) (who was around 20 years old at this time) narrated, Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) sent for me after the battle of Yamama.
- (I went to him) and found `Umar bin Al- Khattab (رضي الله عنه) sitting with him.
- Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه) then said (to me), “`Umar (رضي الله عنه) has come to me and said: “Casualties were heavy among the Qurra’ of the Qur’an (i.e. those who knew the Qur’an by heart) on the day of the Battle of Yamama, and I am afraid that more heavy casualties may take place among the Qurra’ on other battlefields, whereby a large part of the Qur’an may be lost. Therefore I suggest, you (Abu Bakr) order that the Qur’an be collected.”
- I said to `Umar (رضي الله عنه), “How can you do something which Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) did not do?”
- `Umar (رضي الله عنه) said, “By Allah, that is a good project.” `Umar kept on urging me to accept his proposal till Allah opened my chest for it and I began to realize the good in the idea which `Umar (رضي الله عنه) had realized.”
- Then Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه) said (to me). ‘You are a wise young man and we do not have any suspicion about you, and you used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم). So you should search for (the fragmentary scripts of) the Qur’an and collect it in one book.”
- By Allah If they had ordered me to shift one of the mountains, it would not have been heavier for me than this ordering me to collect the Qur’an. Then I said to Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه), “How will you do something which Allah’s Messenger (صلى الله عليه وسلم) did not do?”
- Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه) replied, “By Allah, it is a good project.” Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه) kept on urging me to accept his idea until Allah opened my chest for what He had opened the chests of Abu Bakr and `Umar (رضي الله عنهم).
- So I started looking for the Qur’an and collecting it from (what was written on) palm stalks, thin white stones and also from the men who knew it by heart, till I found the last Verse of Surat at-Tauba (Repentance) with Abi Khuzaima Al-Ansari (رضي الله عنه), and I did not find it with anybody other than him…
- Then the complete manuscripts (copy) of the Qur’an remained with Abu Bakr (رضي الله عنه) till he died, then with `Umar (رضي الله عنه) till the end of his life, and then with Hafsa (رضي الله عنها), the daughter of `Umar (رضي الله عنه).[37]
- Muhammad Mustafa al-Azami writes in his book “The History of the Quranic Text” records the statement, Zaid Ibn Thabit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) Fathul Bari where Sheikh Ibn Hajar records his statement under the explanation of the above hadith that,
قبض النبي (صلى الله عليه وسلم) و لم يكن القرآن جُمع في شيء
- Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) was taken (from this life) while the Quran had not yet been gathered into a book,
- Azami further states, and he quotes Imam Suyuti from al-Itqan that, Note the usage of the word (جُمع) ‘gathered’ rather than ‘written’. The Quran had indeed been written down completely during the Prophet’s lifetime, but had not been compiled together nor were the Surahs arranged,
- Azami commenting on the above mentioned hadith where, Abu Bakr (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) had instructed Zaid (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) to collect the Quran from only those companions, who bring two witnesses who had to testify that he wrote down the Quran in the presence of ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم).
- Azami provides a lot of evidence and detail in his book, which again is not possible to be presented here in this session.[38]
- Yasir Qadhi recorded in his book that Zaid (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) completed this massive task in 2 years time.[39]
- Imagine the humungous task Zaid (رضي الله عنه) had, and it was only possible due to the education policy of Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) which was followed in his lifetime and the instructions of the Quran, that this massive task was completed in such a short period of time,
- Rasoolullah (صلى الله عليه وسلم) taught the Quran to the Sahaba (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم), and the as’haab (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) not only by hearted or memorized the Quran, but they wrote it down directly in the presence of ar-Rasool (صلى الله عليه وسلم), and the recorders of Wahi also separately wrote down the Quran, and the Quran was taught by the sahaba in the same fashion, memorize and write the Quran to other ashaab. It was due to this policy that the Quran collection and compilation project was successfully completed.
9. Spreading of the Quran during the Khilafah of Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)
Dr. Azami writes in his book, “History of the Quranic Text” that Abu Bakr (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) appointed Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) as the next Khalifa on his deathbed, and entrusted the copy of the Quran that was prepared during his caliphate;
- Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)’s reign was marked by the Quran’s rapid spread beyond the confines of the Arabian Peninsula.
- Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) dispatched 10 Sahaba ko Busra for the purpose of teaching the Quran and he sent Ibn Masood (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) to Kufa,
- When a man subsequently informed Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) that there was a person in Kufa dictating the Quran to them solely by heart, Umar (رضي الله عنه) became furious to the point of madness, but discovering the culprit to be none other than Ibn Masood (رضي الله عنه) and recalling his competence and abilities, he calmed down and regained his composure.
- Significant information also exists about the spread of the Quran in Syria. Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) sent Muadh, Ubada, aur Abu ad-Darda (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) to Syria for the teaching of the Quran.,
- In Madina, Umar (رضي الله عنه) sent Yazid bin Abdullah (رضي الله عنه) to teach the Quran to the outlying Bedouins and designated Abu Sufyan as an inspector, to proceed to their tribes and discover the extent to which they had learned the Quran.
- He also appointed three companions in Madina to teach the children, each with a monthly salary of fifteen dirhams, and advised that everyone including adults be taught in easy sets of five verses.
- Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُم) was stabbed in 23 Hijri corresponding to 644 AD, and he refused to appoint a caliph and handed over the copy of the Quran to his daughter Hafsa (رضي الله عنها) in the meantime, which remained with her.[40]
- During the Khilafah of Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ), Zaid Ibn Thabit (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) became one of the foremost authorities on the Quran. Umar (رضي الله عنه) once addressed the Muslims and said, O people, whoever wants to ask about the Quran, let him go to Zaid Ibn Thabit (رضي الله عنه).[41]
10. Finalization of the Tajweed of the Quran during the Khilafah of Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)
After Umar (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)’s death, Muslims made their pledge of allegience to Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) and chose him as the next Caliph;
- In a hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari, Anas Ibn Malik (رضي الله عنه) narrates that Hudhaifa bin Al-Yaman (رضي الله عنه) came to `Uthman (رضي الله عنه) at the time when the people of Sham and the people of Iraq were Waging war to conquer Arminya and Adharbijan.
- Hudhaifa (رضي الله عنه) was afraid of their (the people of Sham and Iraq) differences in the recitation of the Qur’an, so he said to `Uthman (رضي الله عنه), “O chief of the Believers! Save this nation before they differ about the Book (Qur’an) as Jews and the Christians did before.”
- So `Uthman sent a message to Hafsa (رضي الله عنها) saying, “Send us the manuscripts of the Qur’an so that we may compile the Qur’anic materials in perfect copies and return the manuscripts to you.”
- Hafsa (رضي الله عنها) sent it to `Uthman(رضي الله عنه), who then ordered Zaid bin Thabit, `Abdullah bin AzZubair, Sa`id bin Al-As and `AbdurRahman bin Harith bin Hisham (رضي الله عنهم) to rewrite the manuscripts in perfect copies.
- `Uthman (رضي الله عنه) said to the three Quraishi men, “In case you disagree with Zaid bin Thabit (رضي الله عنه) on any point in the Qur’an, then write it in the dialect of Quraish, the Qur’an was revealed in their tongue.”
- They did so, and when they had written many copies, `Uthman (رضي الله عنه) returned the original manuscripts to Hafsa (رضي الله عنها).
- `Uthman (رضي الله عنه) sent to every Muslim province one copy of what they had copied, and ordered that all the other Qur’anic materials, whether written in fragmentary manuscripts or whole copies, be burnt.[42]
- The copy of the Quran that was kept with Hafsa (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهَا), remained with her until her death, after which it was destroyed by the governor of al-Madina during the caliphate of Muawiya, so that the final version of the Quran prepared by Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) shall be the final copy.[43]
11. Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)’s copy of the Quran
During the last part of the caliphate of Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه), some trouble started and the mischief mongers wanted to create doubt in the Khalifa of the Muslims,
- Egyptian politics played a major role in the propaganda war against the Khalifa Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) whose house was sieged and he was put under house arrest,
- Some people were protecting Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه), while the mischief mongers wanted to kill him,
- After several days of siege, Uthman (رضي الله عنه) was reading from the copy of the Quran, when his killers gained access through the roof of his house, and killed him.
- The blood of Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه) fell on the Quran, where he was reading the 64th verse of Surah al-Anfal,
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ حَسْبُكَ اللَّهُ وَمَنِ اتَّبَعَكَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ
- O prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم)! Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى) is sufficient for you and those who follow you from among the believers.[44]
- The very copy of the Quran is currently present in the library of Telyashayakh Masjid in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.[45]
- Radio Carbon dating was done of the copies of the Quran prepared during the caliphate of Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه), and the results indicate that the parchment has a 68% (1σ) probability of belonging to the period between 614 CE to 656 CE.[46]
- This covers the period of Uthman (رضي الله عنه) khilafah.
- Some non-Muslims have casted doubt in the hearts of the Muslims, many books have been written and there is a lot of material on the internet, so they have compared the copy of Uthman (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْه)’s Quran with the current copy of the Quran se, no difference.
- We as Muslims already know and we believe that:
ذَٰلِكَ الْكِتَابُ لَا رَيْبَ ۛ…
- This is the book in which there is nothing doubtful,…[47]
- But for those who doubt, for them there is a daleel, there is proof, whether they like or do not like it and the promise of Allah will surely come to pass.
Here we will end our today’s session, and our next session, what the Ahadith say about the Quran, we will deal with this topic next week In Sha Allah.
Wa aakhirud dawaana anil hamdulillahi Rabbil Alameen,
Allahumma Salli, wa Sallim, wa Barik Ala Nabiyyina Muhammad, wa ala aalihi, wa sahbihi wa barik wa sallim.
References
[1] Dr. Hamidullah, An Introduction to the Science of Hadith, Islamic Book Trust, 2003, Page: 3
[2] Dr. Hamidullah, An Introduction to the Science of Hadith, Islamic Book Trust, 2003, Page: 3
[3] Dr. Hamidullah, An Introduction to the Science of Hadith, Islamic Book Trust, 2003, Page: 4
[4] Dr. Hamidullah, An Introduction to the Science of Hadith, Islamic Book Trust, 2003, Page: 4
[5] al-Mubarakpuri, Safiur R. 1996. ar-Raheeq al-Makhtum (The Sealed Nectar). First ed. Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam. Page: 69
[11] Narrated ‘Aisha (the mother of the faithful believers): The commencement of the Divine Inspiration to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was in the form of good dreams which came true like bright daylight, and then the love of seclusion was bestowed upon him. He used to go in seclusion in the cave of Hira where he used to worship (Allah alone) continuously for many days before his desire to see his family. He used to take with him the journey food for the stay and then come back to (his wife) Khadija to take his food likewise again till suddenly the Truth descended upon him while he was in the cave of Hira. The angel came to him and asked him to read. The Prophet (ﷺ) replied, “I do not know how to read.” The Prophet (ﷺ) added, “The angel caught me (forcefully) and pressed me so hard that I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read and I replied, ‘I do not know how to read.’ Thereupon he caught me again and pressed me a second time till I could not bear it any more. He then released me and again asked me to read but again I replied, ‘I do not know how to read (or what shall I read)?’ Thereupon he caught me for the third time and pressed me, and then released me and said, ‘Read in the name of your Lord, who has created (all that exists), created man from a clot. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous.” (96.1, 96.2, 96.3) Then Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) returned with the Inspiration and with his heart beating severely. Then he went to Khadija bint Khuwailid and said, “Cover me! Cover me!” They covered him till his fear was over and after that he told her everything that had happened and said, “I fear that something may happen to me.” Khadija replied, “Never! By Allah, Allah will never disgrace you. You keep good relations with your kith and kin, help the poor and the destitute, serve your guests generously and assist the deserving calamity-afflicted ones.” Khadija then accompanied him to her cousin Waraqa bin Naufal bin Asad bin ‘Abdul ‘Uzza, who, during the pre-Islamic Period became a Christian and used to write the writing with Hebrew letters. He would write from the Gospel in Hebrew as much as Allah wished him to write. He was an old man and had lost his eyesight. Khadija said to Waraqa, “Listen to the story of your nephew, O my cousin!” Waraqa asked, “O my nephew! What have you seen?” Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) described whatever he had seen. Waraqa said, “This is the same one who keeps the secrets (angel Gabriel) whom Allah had sent to Moses. I wish I were young and could live up to the time when your people would turn you out.” Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) asked, “Will they drive me out?” Waraqa replied in the affirmative and said, “Anyone (man) who came with something similar to what you have brought was treated with hostility; and if I should remain alive till the day when you will be turned out then I would support you strongly.” But after a few days Waraqa died and the Divine Inspiration was also paused for a while.
حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ بُكَيْرٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا اللَّيْثُ، عَنْ عُقَيْلٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ عُرْوَةَ بْنِ الزُّبَيْرِ، عَنْ عَائِشَةَ أُمِّ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ، أَنَّهَا قَالَتْ أَوَّلُ مَا بُدِئَ بِهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم مِنَ الْوَحْىِ الرُّؤْيَا الصَّالِحَةُ فِي النَّوْمِ، فَكَانَ لاَ يَرَى رُؤْيَا إِلاَّ جَاءَتْ مِثْلَ فَلَقِ الصُّبْحِ، ثُمَّ حُبِّبَ إِلَيْهِ الْخَلاَءُ، وَكَانَ يَخْلُو بِغَارِ حِرَاءٍ فَيَتَحَنَّثُ فِيهِ ـ وَهُوَ التَّعَبُّدُ ـ اللَّيَالِيَ ذَوَاتِ الْعَدَدِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَنْزِعَ إِلَى أَهْلِهِ، وَيَتَزَوَّدُ لِذَلِكَ، ثُمَّ يَرْجِعُ إِلَى خَدِيجَةَ، فَيَتَزَوَّدُ لِمِثْلِهَا، حَتَّى جَاءَهُ الْحَقُّ وَهُوَ فِي غَارِ حِرَاءٍ، فَجَاءَهُ الْمَلَكُ فَقَالَ اقْرَأْ. قَالَ ” مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئٍ ”. قَالَ ” فَأَخَذَنِي فَغَطَّنِي حَتَّى بَلَغَ مِنِّي الْجَهْدَ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ اقْرَأْ. قُلْتُ مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئٍ. فَأَخَذَنِي فَغَطَّنِي الثَّانِيَةَ حَتَّى بَلَغَ مِنِّي الْجَهْدَ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ اقْرَأْ. فَقُلْتُ مَا أَنَا بِقَارِئٍ. فَأَخَذَنِي فَغَطَّنِي الثَّالِثَةَ، ثُمَّ أَرْسَلَنِي فَقَالَ {اقْرَأْ بِاسْمِ رَبِّكَ الَّذِي خَلَقَ * خَلَقَ الإِنْسَانَ مِنْ عَلَقٍ * اقْرَأْ وَرَبُّكَ الأَكْرَمُ} ”. فَرَجَعَ بِهَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَرْجُفُ فُؤَادُهُ، فَدَخَلَ عَلَى خَدِيجَةَ بِنْتِ خُوَيْلِدٍ رضى الله عنها فَقَالَ ” زَمِّلُونِي زَمِّلُونِي ”. فَزَمَّلُوهُ حَتَّى ذَهَبَ عَنْهُ الرَّوْعُ، فَقَالَ لِخَدِيجَةَ وَأَخْبَرَهَا الْخَبَرَ ” لَقَدْ خَشِيتُ عَلَى نَفْسِي ”. فَقَالَتْ خَدِيجَةُ كَلاَّ وَاللَّهِ مَا يُخْزِيكَ اللَّهُ أَبَدًا، إِنَّكَ لَتَصِلُ الرَّحِمَ، وَتَحْمِلُ الْكَلَّ، وَتَكْسِبُ الْمَعْدُومَ، وَتَقْرِي الضَّيْفَ، وَتُعِينُ عَلَى نَوَائِبِ الْحَقِّ. فَانْطَلَقَتْ بِهِ خَدِيجَةُ حَتَّى أَتَتْ بِهِ وَرَقَةَ بْنَ نَوْفَلِ بْنِ أَسَدِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الْعُزَّى ابْنَ عَمِّ خَدِيجَةَ ـ وَكَانَ امْرَأً تَنَصَّرَ فِي الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ، وَكَانَ يَكْتُبُ الْكِتَابَ الْعِبْرَانِيَّ، فَيَكْتُبُ مِنَ الإِنْجِيلِ بِالْعِبْرَانِيَّةِ مَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ أَنْ يَكْتُبَ، وَكَانَ شَيْخًا كَبِيرًا قَدْ عَمِيَ ـ فَقَالَتْ لَهُ خَدِيجَةُ يَا ابْنَ عَمِّ اسْمَعْ مِنَ ابْنِ أَخِيكَ. فَقَالَ لَهُ وَرَقَةُ يَا ابْنَ أَخِي مَاذَا تَرَى فَأَخْبَرَهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم خَبَرَ مَا رَأَى. فَقَالَ لَهُ وَرَقَةُ هَذَا النَّامُوسُ الَّذِي نَزَّلَ اللَّهُ عَلَى مُوسَى صلى الله عليه وسلم يَا لَيْتَنِي فِيهَا جَذَعًا، لَيْتَنِي أَكُونُ حَيًّا إِذْ يُخْرِجُكَ قَوْمُكَ. فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” أَوَمُخْرِجِيَّ هُمْ ”. قَالَ نَعَمْ، لَمْ يَأْتِ رَجُلٌ قَطُّ بِمِثْلِ مَا جِئْتَ بِهِ إِلاَّ عُودِيَ، وَإِنْ يُدْرِكْنِي يَوْمُكَ أَنْصُرْكَ نَصْرًا مُؤَزَّرًا. ثُمَّ لَمْ يَنْشَبْ وَرَقَةُ أَنْ تُوُفِّيَ وَفَتَرَ الْوَحْىُ.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 3
[12] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 126
[13] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 127
[16] Narrated `Abdullah bin `Amr: I heard the Prophet (ﷺ) saying, “Learn the recitation of Qur’an from four persons: Ibn Mas`ud, Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifa, Ubai and Mu`adh bin Jabal.”
حَدَّثَنِي مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ بَشَّارٍ، حَدَّثَنَا غُنْدَرٌ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعْبَةُ، عَنْ عَمْرٍو، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ، عَنْ مَسْرُوقٍ، عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ سَمِعْتُ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقُولُ “ اسْتَقْرِئُوا الْقُرْآنَ مِنْ أَرْبَعَةٍ مِنَ ابْنِ مَسْعُودٍ وَسَالِمٍ مَوْلَى أَبِي حُذَيْفَةَ، وَأُبَىٍّ، وَمُعَاذِ بْنِ جَبَلٍ ”.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 3806
[17] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 128
[18] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 129
[19] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 128
[20] al-Mubarakpuri, Safiur R. 1996. ar-Raheeq al-Makhtum (The Sealed Nectar). First ed. Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam. Pages: 299-300
[21] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 129
[22] Narrated Zaid bin Thabit: “The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) ordered me to learn some statements from writings of the Jews for him, and he said: ‘For indeed by Allah! I do no trust the Jews with my letters.'” He said: “Half a month did not pass before I learned it, when he (ﷺ) wanted to write to the Jews I would write it to them, and when they wrote to him I would read their letters to him.”
حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُجْرٍ، أَخْبَرَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ أَبِي الزِّنَادِ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ خَارِجَةَ بْنِ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ لَهُ كَلِمَاتِ كِتَابِ يَهُودَ . قَالَ ” إِنِّي وَاللَّهِ مَا آمَنُ يَهُودَ عَلَى كِتَابٍ ” . قَالَ فَمَا مَرَّ بِي نِصْفُ شَهْرٍ حَتَّى تَعَلَّمْتُهُ لَهُ قَالَ فَلَمَّا تَعَلَّمْتُهُ كَانَ إِذَا كَتَبَ إِلَى يَهُودَ كَتَبْتُ إِلَيْهِمْ وَإِذَا كَتَبُوا إِلَيْهِ قَرَأْتُ لَهُ كِتَابَهُمْ . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ . وَقَدْ رُوِيَ مِنْ غَيْرِ هَذَا الْوَجْهِ عَنْ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ رَوَاهُ الأَعْمَشُ عَنْ ثَابِتِ بْنِ عُبَيْدٍ الأَنْصَارِيِّ عَنْ زَيْدِ بْنِ ثَابِتٍ قَالَ أَمَرَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَنْ أَتَعَلَّمَ السُّرْيَانِيَّةَ .
Grade: Hasan (Darussalam) | Reference: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2715
[23] Zaid ibn Thabit, Source: Zayd ibn Thabit (ra): The Scribe of the Prophet ﷺ | The Firsts | Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research
[24] Zayd Ibn Thabit, Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zayd_ibn_Thabit
[25] Narrated Al-Bara: There was revealed: ‘Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and those who strive and fight in the Cause of Allah.’ (4.95) The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “Call Zaid for me and let him bring the board, the inkpot and the scapula bone (or the scapula bone and the ink pot).”‘ Then he said, “Write: ‘Not equal are those Believers who sit..”, and at that time `Amr bin Um Maktum, the blind man was sitting behind the Prophet (ﷺ) . He said, “O Allah’s Apostle! What is your order For me (as regards the above Verse) as I am a blind man?” So, instead of the above Verse, the following Verse was revealed: ‘Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) except those who are disabled (by injury or are blind or lame etc.) and those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah.’ (4.95)
حَدَّثَنَا عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مُوسَى، عَنْ إِسْرَائِيلَ، عَنْ أَبِي إِسْحَاقَ، عَنِ الْبَرَاءِ، قَالَ لَمَّا نَزَلَتْ {لاَ يَسْتَوِي الْقَاعِدُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُجَاهِدُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ} قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” ادْعُ لِي زَيْدًا وَلْيَجِئْ بِاللَّوْحِ وَالدَّوَاةِ وَالْكَتِفِ ـ أَوِ الْكَتِفِ وَالدَّوَاةِ ـ ثُمَّ قَالَ ” اكْتُبْ لاَ يَسْتَوِي الْقَاعِدُونَ ” وَخَلْفَ ظَهْرِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَمْرُو بْنُ أُمِّ مَكْتُومٍ الأَعْمَى قَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ فَمَا تَأْمُرُنِي فَإِنِّي رَجُلٌ ضَرِيرُ الْبَصَرِ فَنَزَلَتْ مَكَانَهَا {لاَ يَسْتَوِي الْقَاعِدُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ} فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ {غَيْرُ أُولِي الضَّرَرِ}”
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4990
[26] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 129
[27] It was narrated that Sahl bin Sa’d said: “I saw Marwan bin Al-Hakam sitting and I came and sat with him. He told us that Zaid bin Thabit told him, that the following was revealed to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ): (Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home) and those who strive hard and fight in the cause of Allah), then Ibn Umm Maktum came when he was dictating it to me (Zaid), and said: ‘O Messenger of Allah! If I were able to go for Jihad I would go out for Jihad.’ Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed to him – while his thigh was against mine, and became so heavy that I thought my thigh would break, until (the revelation) stopped -: ‘Except those who are disabled (by injury or are blind or lame).'” [An-Nisa’ 4:95]. Abu ‘Abdur-Rahman (An-Nasa’i) said: This ‘Abdur-Rahman bin Ishaq is tolerable, while ‘Abdur-Rahman bin Ishaq, from whom reports ‘Ali bin Mushir, abu Mu’awiyah, and ‘Abdul-Wahid bin Ziyad from An-Nu’man bin Sa’d – he is not trustworthy.
أَخْبَرَنَا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ بَزِيعٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنَا بِشْرٌ، – يَعْنِي ابْنَ الْمُفَضَّلِ – قَالَ أَنْبَأَنَا عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ إِسْحَاقَ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، عَنْ سَهْلِ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، قَالَ رَأَيْتُ مَرْوَانَ بْنَ الْحَكَمِ جَالِسًا فَجِئْتُ حَتَّى جَلَسْتُ إِلَيْهِ فَحَدَّثَنَا أَنَّ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ حَدَّثَهُ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أُنْزِلَ عَلَيْهِ لاَ يَسْتَوِي الْقَاعِدُونَ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُجَاهِدُونَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ . فَجَاءَ ابْنُ أُمِّ مَكْتُومٍ وَهُوَ يُمِلُّهَا عَلَىَّ فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ لَوْ أَسْتَطِيعُ الْجِهَادَ لَجَاهَدْتُ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ وَفَخِذُهُ عَلَى فَخِذِي فَثَقُلَتْ عَلَىَّ حَتَّى ظَنَنْتُ أَنْ سَتُرَضُّ فَخِذِي ثُمَّ سُرِّيَ عَنْهُ { غَيْرُ أُولِي الضَّرَرِ } قَالَ أَبُو عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ عَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ إِسْحَاقَ هَذَا لَيْسَ بِهِ بَأْسٌ وَعَبْدُ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنُ إِسْحَاقَ يَرْوِي عَنْهُ عَلِيُّ بْنُ مُسْهِرٍ وَأَبُو مُعَاوِيَةَ وَعَبْدُ الْوَاحِدِ بْنُ زِيَادٍ عَنِ النُّعْمَانِ بْنِ سَعْدٍ لَيْسَ بِثِقَةٍ .
Grade: Sahih (Darussalam) | Reference: Sunan an-Nasa’i 3099
[28] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 129
[29] Abu Sa’id Khudri reported that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said: Do not take down anything from me, and he who took down anything from me except the Qur’an, he should efface that and narrate from me, for there is no harm in it and he who attributed any falsehood to me-and Hammam said: I think he also said: “deliberately” – he should in fact find his abode in the Hell-Fire.
حَدَّثَنَا هَدَّابُ بْنُ خَالِدٍ الأَزْدِيُّ، حَدَّثَنَا هَمَّامٌ، عَنْ زَيْدِ بْنِ أَسْلَمَ، عَنْ عَطَاءِ بْنِ يَسَارٍ، عَنْ أَبِي سَعِيدٍ الْخُدْرِيِّ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ “ لاَ تَكْتُبُوا عَنِّي وَمَنْ كَتَبَ عَنِّي غَيْرَ الْقُرْآنِ فَلْيَمْحُهُ وَحَدِّثُوا عَنِّي وَلاَ حَرَجَ وَمَنْ كَذَبَ عَلَىَّ – قَالَ هَمَّامٌ أَحْسِبُهُ قَالَ – مُتَعَمِّدًا فَلْيَتَبَوَّأْ مَقْعَدَهُ مِنَ النَّارِ ” .
Reference: Sahih Muslim 3004
[30] Dr. Hamidullah, An Introduction to the Science of Hadith, Islamic Book Trust, 2003, Pages: 18-34
[31] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 130
[32] Narrated Abu-Huraira: Gabriel used to repeat the recitation of the Qur’an with the Prophet (ﷺ) once a year, but he repeated it twice with him in the year he died. The Prophet (ﷺ) used to stay in I`tikaf for ten days every year (in the month of Ramadan), but in the year of his death, he stayed in I`tikaf for twenty days.
حَدَّثَنَا خَالِدُ بْنُ يَزِيدَ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرٍ، عَنْ أَبِي حَصِينٍ، عَنْ أَبِي صَالِحٍ، عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، قَالَ كَانَ يَعْرِضُ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم الْقُرْآنَ كُلَّ عَامٍ مَرَّةً، فَعَرَضَ عَلَيْهِ مَرَّتَيْنِ فِي الْعَامِ الَّذِي قُبِضَ، وَكَانَ يَعْتَكِفُ كُلَّ عَامٍ عَشْرًا فَاعْتَكَفَ عِشْرِينَ فِي الْعَامِ الَّذِي قُبِضَ {فِيهِ}
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4998
Ibn ‘Abbas reported that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was the most generous of people in charity, but he was generous to the utmost in the month of Ramadan. Gabriel (peace be upon him) would meet him every year during the month of Ramadin until it ended, and Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) recited to him the Qur’an; and when Gabriel met him Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) was most generous in giving charity like the blowing wind.
حَدَّثَنَا مَنْصُورُ بْنُ أَبِي مُزَاحِمٍ، حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ، – يَعْنِي ابْنَ سَعْدٍ – عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، ح وَحَدَّثَنِي أَبُو عِمْرَانَ، مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ زِيَادٍ – وَاللَّفْظُ لَهُ – أَخْبَرَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ، عَنِ ابْنِ، شِهَابٍ عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عُتْبَةَ بْنِ مَسْعُودٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ، قَالَ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَجْوَدَ النَّاسِ بِالْخَيْرِ وَكَانَ أَجْوَدَ مَا يَكُونُ فِي شَهْرِ رَمَضَانَ إِنَّ جِبْرِيلَ عَلَيْهِ السَّلاَمُ كَانَ يَلْقَاهُ فِي كُلِّ سَنَةٍ فِي رَمَضَانَ حَتَّى يَنْسَلِخَ فَيَعْرِضُ عَلَيْهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم الْقُرْآنَ فَإِذَا لَقِيَهُ جِبْرِيلُ كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم أَجْوَدَ بِالْخَيْرِ مِنَ الرِّيحِ الْمُرْسَلَةِ .
Reference: Sahih Muslim 2308a
[33] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 131
[34] Narrated Al-‘Irbad bin Sariyah: “One day after the morning Salat, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) exhorted us to the extent that the eyes wept and the hearts shuddered with fear. A man said: ‘Indeed this is a farewell exhortation. [So what] do you order us O Messenger of Allah?’ He said: ‘I order you to have Taqwa of Allah, and to listen and obey, even in the case of an Ethiopian slave. Indeed, whomever among you lives, he will see much difference. Beware of the newly invented matters, for indeed they are astray. Whoever among you sees that, then he must stick to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided Khulafa’, cling to it with the molars.'”
حَدَّثَنَا عَلِيُّ بْنُ حُجْرٍ، حَدَّثَنَا بَقِيَّةُ بْنُ الْوَلِيدِ، عَنْ بَحِيرِ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، عَنْ خَالِدِ بْنِ مَعْدَانَ، عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو السُّلَمِيِّ، عَنِ الْعِرْبَاضِ بْنِ سَارِيَةَ، قَالَ وَعَظَنَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَوْمًا بَعْدَ صَلاَةِ الْغَدَاةِ مَوْعِظَةً بَلِيغَةً ذَرَفَتْ مِنْهَا الْعُيُونُ وَوَجِلَتْ مِنْهَا الْقُلُوبُ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ إِنَّ هَذِهِ مَوْعِظَةُ مُوَدِّعٍ فَمَاذَا تَعْهَدُ إِلَيْنَا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قَالَ “ أُوصِيكُمْ بِتَقْوَى اللَّهِ وَالسَّمْعِ وَالطَّاعَةِ وَإِنْ عَبْدٌ حَبَشِيٌّ فَإِنَّهُ مَنْ يَعِشْ مِنْكُمْ يَرَى اخْتِلاَفًا كَثِيرًا وَإِيَّاكُمْ وَمُحْدَثَاتِ الأُمُورِ فَإِنَّهَا ضَلاَلَةٌ فَمَنْ أَدْرَكَ ذَلِكَ مِنْكُمْ فَعَلَيْهِ بِسُنَّتِي وَسُنَّةِ الْخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ الْمَهْدِيِّينَ عَضُّوا عَلَيْهَا بِالنَّوَاجِذِ ” . قَالَ أَبُو عِيسَى هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ . وَقَدْ رَوَى ثَوْرُ بْنُ يَزِيدَ، عَنْ خَالِدِ بْنِ مَعْدَانَ، عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو السُّلَمِيِّ، عَنِ الْعِرْبَاضِ بْنِ سَارِيَةَ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَحْوَ هَذَا . حَدَّثَنَا بِذَلِكَ الْحَسَنُ بْنُ عَلِيٍّ الْخَلاَّلُ وَغَيْرُ وَاحِدٍ قَالُوا حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو عَاصِمٍ عَنْ ثَوْرِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ عَنْ خَالِدِ بْنِ مَعْدَانَ عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ عَمْرٍو السُّلَمِيِّ عَنِ الْعِرْبَاضِ بْنِ سَارِيَةَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَحْوَهُ وَالْعِرْبَاضُ بْنُ سَارِيَةَ يُكْنَى أَبَا نَجِيحٍ . وَقَدْ رُوِيَ هَذَا الْحَدِيثُ عَنْ حُجْرِ بْنِ حُجْرٍ عَنْ عِرْبَاضِ بْنِ سَارِيَةَ عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه وسلم نَحْوَهُ .
Grade: Sahih (Darussalam) | Reference: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2676
[35] Narrated `Abdullah bin `Abbas: Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, “Gabriel recited the Qur’an to me in one way. Then I requested him (to read it in another way), and continued asking him to recite it in other ways, and he recited it in several ways till he ultimately recited it in seven different ways.”
حَدَّثَنَا سَعِيدُ بْنُ عُفَيْرٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي اللَّيْثُ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عُقَيْلٌ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، أَنَّ ابْنَ عَبَّاسٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ حَدَّثَهُ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ “ أَقْرَأَنِي جِبْرِيلُ عَلَى حَرْفٍ فَرَاجَعْتُهُ، فَلَمْ أَزَلْ أَسْتَزِيدُهُ وَيَزِيدُنِي حَتَّى انْتَهَى إِلَى سَبْعَةِ أَحْرُفٍ ”.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4991
[36] Narrated `Umar bin Al-Khattab: I heard Hisham bin Hakim reciting Surat Al-Furqan during the lifetime of Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) and I listened to his recitation and noticed that he recited in several different ways which Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) had not taught me. I was about to jump over him during his prayer, but I controlled my temper, and when he had completed his prayer, I put his upper garment around his neck and seized him by it and said, “Who taught you this Sura which I heard you reciting?” He replied, “Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) taught it to me.” I said, “You have told a lie, for Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) has taught it to me in a different way from yours.” So I dragged him to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) and said (to Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)), “I heard this person reciting Surat Al-Furqan in a way which you haven’t taught me!” On that Allah’s Apostle said, “Release him, (O `Umar!) Recite, O Hisham!” Then he recited in the same way as I heard him reciting. Then Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, “It was revealed in this way,” and added, “Recite, O `Umar!” I recited it as he had taught me. Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) then said, “It was revealed in this way. This Qur’an has been revealed to be recited in seven different ways, so recite of it whichever (way) is easier for you (or read as much of it as may be easy for you).
حَدَّثَنَا سَعِيدُ بْنُ عُفَيْرٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي اللَّيْثُ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عُقَيْلٌ، عَنِ ابْنِ شِهَابٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عُرْوَةُ بْنُ الزُّبَيْرِ، أَنَّ الْمِسْوَرَ بْنَ مَخْرَمَةَ، وَعَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنَ عَبْدٍ الْقَارِيَّ، حَدَّثَاهُ أَنَّهُمَا، سَمِعَا عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ، يَقُولُ سَمِعْتُ هِشَامَ بْنَ حَكِيمٍ، يَقْرَأُ سُورَةَ الْفُرْقَانِ فِي حَيَاةِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَاسْتَمَعْتُ لِقِرَاءَتِهِ فَإِذَا هُوَ يَقْرَأُ عَلَى حُرُوفٍ كَثِيرَةٍ لَمْ يُقْرِئْنِيهَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَكِدْتُ أُسَاوِرُهُ فِي الصَّلاَةِ فَتَصَبَّرْتُ حَتَّى سَلَّمَ فَلَبَّبْتُهُ بِرِدَائِهِ فَقُلْتُ مَنْ أَقْرَأَكَ هَذِهِ السُّورَةَ الَّتِي سَمِعْتُكَ تَقْرَأُ. قَالَ أَقْرَأَنِيهَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم. فَقُلْتُ كَذَبْتَ فَإِنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَدْ أَقْرَأَنِيهَا عَلَى غَيْرِ مَا قَرَأْتَ، فَانْطَلَقْتُ بِهِ أَقُودُهُ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقُلْتُ إِنِّي سَمِعْتُ هَذَا يَقْرَأُ بِسُورَةِ الْفُرْقَانِ عَلَى حُرُوفٍ لَمْ تُقْرِئْنِيهَا. فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” أَرْسِلْهُ اقْرَأْ يَا هِشَامُ ”. فَقَرَأَ عَلَيْهِ الْقِرَاءَةَ الَّتِي سَمِعْتُهُ يَقْرَأُ. فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” كَذَلِكَ أُنْزِلَتْ ”. ثُمَّ قَالَ ” اقْرَأْ يَا عُمَرُ ”. فَقَرَأْتُ الْقِرَاءَةَ الَّتِي أَقْرَأَنِي، فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” كَذَلِكَ أُنْزِلَتْ، إِنَّ هَذَا الْقُرْآنَ أُنْزِلَ عَلَى سَبْعَةِ أَحْرُفٍ فَاقْرَءُوا مَا تَيَسَّرَ مِنْهُ ”.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4992
[37] Narrated Zaid bin Thabit: Abu Bakr As-Siddiq sent for me when the people of Yamama had been killed (i.e., a number of the Prophet’s Companions who fought against Musailima). (I went to him) and found `Umar bin Al- Khattab sitting with him. Abu Bakr then said (to me), “`Umar has come to me and said: “Casualties were heavy among the Qurra’ of the Qur’an (i.e. those who knew the Qur’an by heart) on the day of the Battle of Yamama, and I am afraid that more heavy casualties may take place among the Qurra’ on other battlefields, whereby a large part of the Qur’an may be lost. Therefore I suggest, you (Abu Bakr) order that the Qur’an be collected.” I said to `Umar, “How can you do something which Allah’s Apostle did not do?” `Umar said, “By Allah, that is a good project.” `Umar kept on urging me to accept his proposal till Allah opened my chest for it and I began to realize the good in the idea which `Umar had realized.” Then Abu Bakr said (to me). ‘You are a wise young man and we do not have any suspicion about you, and you used to write the Divine Inspiration for Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ). So you should search for (the fragmentary scripts of) the Qur’an and collect it in one book.” By Allah If they had ordered me to shift one of the mountains, it would not have been heavier for me than this ordering me to collect the Qur’an. Then I said to Abu Bakr, “How will you do something which Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) did not do?” Abu Bakr replied, “By Allah, it is a good project.” Abu Bakr kept on urging me to accept his idea until Allah opened my chest for what He had opened the chests of Abu Bakr and `Umar. So I started looking for the Qur’an and collecting it from (what was written on) palm stalks, thin white stones and also from the men who knew it by heart, till I found the last Verse of Surat at-Tauba (Repentance) with Abi Khuzaima Al-Ansari, and I did not find it with anybody other than him. The Verse is: ‘Verily there has come unto you an Apostle (Muhammad) from amongst yourselves. It grieves him that you should receive any injury or difficulty..(till the end of Surat-Baraa’ (at-Tauba) (9.128-129). Then the complete manuscripts (copy) of the Qur’an remained with Abu Bakr till he died, then with `Umar till the end of his life, and then with Hafsa, the daughter of `Umar.
حَدَّثَنَا مُوسَى بْنُ إِسْمَاعِيلَ، عَنْ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ شِهَابٍ، عَنْ عُبَيْدِ بْنِ السَّبَّاقِ، أَنَّ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ قَالَ أَرْسَلَ إِلَىَّ أَبُو بَكْرٍ مَقْتَلَ أَهْلِ الْيَمَامَةِ فَإِذَا عُمَرُ بْنُ الْخَطَّابِ عِنْدَهُ قَالَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ إِنَّ عُمَرَ أَتَانِي فَقَالَ إِنَّ الْقَتْلَ قَدِ اسْتَحَرَّ يَوْمَ الْيَمَامَةِ بِقُرَّاءِ الْقُرْآنِ وَإِنِّي أَخْشَى أَنْ يَسْتَحِرَّ الْقَتْلُ بِالْقُرَّاءِ بِالْمَوَاطِنِ، فَيَذْهَبَ كَثِيرٌ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ وَإِنِّي أَرَى أَنْ تَأْمُرَ بِجَمْعِ الْقُرْآنِ. قُلْتُ لِعُمَرَ كَيْفَ تَفْعَلُ شَيْئًا لَمْ يَفْعَلْهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ عُمَرُ هَذَا وَاللَّهِ خَيْرٌ. فَلَمْ يَزَلْ عُمَرُ يُرَاجِعُنِي حَتَّى شَرَحَ اللَّهُ صَدْرِي لِذَلِكَ، وَرَأَيْتُ فِي ذَلِكَ الَّذِي رَأَى عُمَرُ. قَالَ زَيْدٌ قَالَ أَبُو بَكْرٍ إِنَّكَ رَجُلٌ شَابٌّ عَاقِلٌ لاَ نَتَّهِمُكَ، وَقَدْ كُنْتَ تَكْتُبُ الْوَحْىَ لِرَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَتَتَبَّعِ الْقُرْآنَ فَاجْمَعْهُ فَوَاللَّهِ لَوْ كَلَّفُونِي نَقْلَ جَبَلٍ مِنَ الْجِبَالِ مَا كَانَ أَثْقَلَ عَلَىَّ مِمَّا أَمَرَنِي مِنْ جَمْعِ الْقُرْآنِ قُلْتُ كَيْفَ تَفْعَلُونَ شَيْئًا لَمْ يَفْعَلْهُ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ هُوَ وَاللَّهِ خَيْرٌ فَلَمْ يَزَلْ أَبُو بَكْرٍ يُرَاجِعُنِي حَتَّى شَرَحَ اللَّهُ صَدْرِي لِلَّذِي شَرَحَ لَهُ صَدْرَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ فَتَتَبَّعْتُ الْقُرْآنَ أَجْمَعُهُ مِنَ الْعُسُبِ وَاللِّخَافِ وَصُدُورِ الرِّجَالِ حَتَّى وَجَدْتُ آخِرَ سُورَةِ التَّوْبَةِ مَعَ أَبِي خُزَيْمَةَ الأَنْصَارِيِّ لَمْ أَجِدْهَا مَعَ أَحَدٍ غَيْرَهُ {لَقَدْ جَاءَكُمْ رَسُولٌ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ عَزِيزٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ} حَتَّى خَاتِمَةِ بَرَاءَةَ، فَكَانَتِ الصُّحُفُ عِنْدَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ حَتَّى تَوَفَّاهُ اللَّهُ ثُمَّ عِنْدَ عُمَرَ حَيَاتَهُ ثُمَّ عِنْدَ حَفْصَةَ بِنْتِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنه ـ.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4986
[38] Dr. Muhammad Mustafa al-Azami, The History of the Quranic Text from Revelation to Compilation, UK Islamic Academy, Pages: 77-84
[39] Dr. Yasir Qadhi, An Introduction to the Sciences of the Qura’an, Al-Hidayah Publishing and Distribution, First Edition, Page 135
[40] Dr. Muhammad Mustafa al-Azami, The History of the Quranic Text from Revelation to Compilation, UK Islamic Academy, Pages: 85-86
[41] Zayd Ibn Thabit, Source: Zayd ibn Thabit – Wikipedia
[42] Narrated Anas bin Malik: Hudhaifa bin Al-Yaman came to `Uthman at the time when the people of Sham and the people of Iraq were Waging war to conquer Arminya and Adharbijan. Hudhaifa was afraid of their (the people of Sham and Iraq) differences in the recitation of the Qur’an, so he said to `Uthman, “O chief of the Believers! Save this nation before they differ about the Book (Qur’an) as Jews and the Christians did before.” So `Uthman sent a message to Hafsa saying, “Send us the manuscripts of the Qur’an so that we may compile the Qur’anic materials in perfect copies and return the manuscripts to you.” Hafsa sent it to `Uthman. `Uthman then ordered Zaid bin Thabit, `Abdullah bin AzZubair, Sa`id bin Al-As and `AbdurRahman bin Harith bin Hisham to rewrite the manuscripts in perfect copies. `Uthman said to the three Quraishi men, “In case you disagree with Zaid bin Thabit on any point in the Qur’an, then write it in the dialect of Quraish, the Qur’an was revealed in their tongue.” They did so, and when they had written many copies, `Uthman returned the original manuscripts to Hafsa. `Uthman sent to every Muslim province one copy of what they had copied, and ordered that all the other Qur’anic materials, whether written in fragmentary manuscripts or whole copies, be burnt.
حَدَّثَنَا مُوسَى، حَدَّثَنَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ شِهَابٍ، أَنَّ أَنَسَ بْنَ مَالِكٍ، حَدَّثَهُ أَنَّ حُذَيْفَةَ بْنَ الْيَمَانِ قَدِمَ عَلَى عُثْمَانَ وَكَانَ يُغَازِي أَهْلَ الشَّأْمِ فِي فَتْحِ إِرْمِينِيَةَ وَأَذْرَبِيجَانَ مَعَ أَهْلِ الْعِرَاقِ فَأَفْزَعَ حُذَيْفَةَ اخْتِلاَفُهُمْ فِي الْقِرَاءَةِ فَقَالَ حُذَيْفَةُ لِعُثْمَانَ يَا أَمِيرَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَدْرِكْ هَذِهِ الأُمَّةَ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْتَلِفُوا فِي الْكِتَابِ اخْتِلاَفَ الْيَهُودِ وَالنَّصَارَى فَأَرْسَلَ عُثْمَانُ إِلَى حَفْصَةَ أَنْ أَرْسِلِي إِلَيْنَا بِالصُّحُفِ نَنْسَخُهَا فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ ثُمَّ نَرُدُّهَا إِلَيْكِ فَأَرْسَلَتْ بِهَا حَفْصَةُ إِلَى عُثْمَانَ فَأَمَرَ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ وَعَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ الزُّبَيْرِ وَسَعِيدَ بْنَ الْعَاصِ وَعَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنَ الْحَارِثِ بْنِ هِشَامٍ فَنَسَخُوهَا فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ وَقَالَ عُثْمَانُ لِلرَّهْطِ الْقُرَشِيِّينَ الثَّلاَثَةِ إِذَا اخْتَلَفْتُمْ أَنْتُمْ وَزَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ فِي شَىْءٍ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ فَاكْتُبُوهُ بِلِسَانِ قُرَيْشٍ فَإِنَّمَا نَزَلَ بِلِسَانِهِمْ فَفَعَلُوا حَتَّى إِذَا نَسَخُوا الصُّحُفَ فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ رَدَّ عُثْمَانُ الصُّحُفَ إِلَى حَفْصَةَ وَأَرْسَلَ إِلَى كُلِّ أُفُقٍ بِمُصْحَفٍ مِمَّا نَسَخُوا وَأَمَرَ بِمَا سِوَاهُ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ فِي كُلِّ صَحِيفَةٍ أَوْ مُصْحَفٍ أَنْ يُحْرَقَ.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4987
Narrated Anas bin Malik: (The Caliph `Uthman ordered Zaid bin Thabit, Sa`id bin Al-As, `Abdullah bin Az-Zubair and `Abdur- Rahman bin Al-Harith bin Hisham to write the Qur’an in the form of a book (Mushafs) and said to them. “In case you disagree with Zaid bin Thabit (Al-Ansari) regarding any dialectic Arabic utterance of the Qur’an, then write it in the dialect of Quraish, for the Qur’an was revealed in this dialect.” So they did it.
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو الْيَمَانِ، حَدَّثَنَا شُعَيْبٌ، عَنِ الزُّهْرِيِّ، وَأَخْبَرَنِي أَنَسُ بْنُ مَالِكٍ، قَالَ فَأَمَرَ عُثْمَانُ زَيْدَ بْنَ ثَابِتٍ وَسَعِيدَ بْنَ الْعَاصِ وَعَبْدَ اللَّهِ بْنَ الزُّبَيْرِ وَعَبْدَ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنَ الْحَارِثِ بْنِ هِشَامٍ أَنْ يَنْسَخُوهَا، فِي الْمَصَاحِفِ وَقَالَ لَهُمْ إِذَا اخْتَلَفْتُمْ أَنْتُمْ وَزَيْدُ بْنُ ثَابِتٍ فِي عَرَبِيَّةٍ مِنْ عَرَبِيَّةِ الْقُرْآنِ فَاكْتُبُوهَا بِلِسَانِ قُرَيْشٍ، فَإِنَّ الْقُرْآنَ أُنْزِلَ بِلِسَانِهِمْ فَفَعَلُوا.
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 4984
[43] Hafsa’s copy was destroyed after her death, Source: https://www.livingislam.org/fiqhi/fiqha_e27.html
[45] Masoodul Hassan, Hadrat Othman Ghani, Kitab Bhavan, Second Edition, Page 201. Also see Uthman’s death, source: Which Sahabi died while reciting Quran? – Life in Saudi Arabia
[46] Dating the Uthman Manuscript to 604-649 AD, Source: Radiocarbon (Carbon-14) Dating Of The Manuscripts Of The Qur’an